WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING: A rogue Twitter employee briefly shut down Donald Trump’s account last night on their last day of work, the social media firm announced. Twitter said the account had been “unintentionally deactivated” for about 11 minutes and initially blamed “human error” for the brief silence, promising “steps to prevent this from happening again.” In a later statement the firm said a “Twitter customer support employee” had deactivated Trump’s account on their final day at work with the firm. Playbook is happy to report the president is now back online.

Good Friday morning.

DRIVING THE DAY

A LONG TIME IN POLITICS: This time last week, the Sun splashed a story by Westminster correspondent Harry Cole about a group of political aides setting up a WhatsApp group to swap experiences of sexual harassment in parliament. It was the first breach of a dam that over the subsequent seven days has flooded SW1 in a torrent of sleaze. Whispered stories and rumors that have echoed through Westminster for years have now burst onto newspaper front pages. One senior minister has quit, with two more under investigation. Another MP has been suspended. Several young activists have accused their party of discouraging the reporting of serious sexual assaults. One spoke in harrowing detail on national radio of being raped at an official event. And everyone in Westminster believes there is still more to come.

Today’s revelations:

— Defense Secretary Michael Fallon was ordered to resign after his Cabinet colleague Andrea Leadsom accused him of making a series of inappropriate sexual comments to her, the Sun reported last night.

— Labour suspended veteran MP Kelvin Hopkins over allegations of sexual misbehavior towards a young activist. Jeremy Corbyn’s office knew of some of the allegations over a year ago, but the leader still promoted his friend into the shadow Cabinet.

— A third Labour activist told of being discouraged by party insiders from reporting a sexual assault. He writes anonymously in today’s Mirror.

— A Labour peer and top QC told the Evening Standard that Damian Green’s accuser Kate Maltby told her of his unwanted advances a year ago. Green still denies the charge and is threatening to sue for libel.

— Former Tory adviser and political PR guru Jo Tanner writes in the Times that she was the aide who had her drink spiked in Strangers’ Bar earlier this year.

No defense: The Sun’s Tom Newton Dunn has the most eye-popping revelation of the day — that Commons leader Andrea Leadsom sealed Fallon’s fate Wednesday by providing a dossier of sexually charged comments he allegedly made to her several years ago. Fallon’s friends are not denying he may have used inappropriate language, but strongly dispute the central charge splashed across the Sun’s front page: That when Leadsom once complained of having cold hands, he replied: “I know where you can put them to warm up.” His allies hit back inside the paper, even suggesting Leadsom may have made the accusations to avoid losing her own job in a future reshuffle. “Nobody’s going to dare to sack a whistleblower, are they?” is the crudest of the quotes.

Prescient tweet of the week: From the Times’ Sam Coates, during Monday’s harassment debate in the Commons.

Scandal reaches Corbyn: The Labour Party suspended veteran left-winger Kelvin Hopkins last night over allegations about his behavior with a young aide 30 years his junior, revealed last night by the Telegraph’s political correspondent Laura Hughes. Hopkins has yet to respond. The story is the first sleaze scandal to be a major problem for Jeremy Corbyn, as the young researcher involved complained about Hopkins’ behavior well over a year ago — yet he was still handed a shadow cabinet role last summer by the Labour leader, a personal friend and ally. A senior Labour official told Playbook last night that not all the allegations had come to light at that time. They insisted it was fresh information revealed yesterday — and not the current febrile atmosphere — that caused the party to act.

Scorecard: Hopkins is the second Labour MP to be suspended and have the whip withdrawn inside a fortnight. Jared O’Mara got the same treatment last week over misogynistic and homophobic comments he posted online some years ago. On the Tory side Michael Fallon resigned as defense secretary, while Mark Garnier and Damian Green face investigations by the cabinet secretary. Green denies any wrongdoing.

Reshuffle kerfuffle: If the idea was to limit the fallout from Fallon’s resignation by quickly promoting a trusted ally, it’s hard to describe this as mission accomplished. You all saw the anonymous Tory rage yesterday at Gavin Williamson’s unexpected promotion, which blind-sided Westminster. Last night a couple more Tory MPs went on the record, albeit in slightly less-colorful language. “It does rather look like he picked himself a plum job,” tweeted Anna Soubry. Nick Boles told Channel 4 News that Williamson is “certainly not cuddly” and said: “It does slightly remind one of the time George Bush asked Dick Cheney to find a vice president, and Dick Cheney ended up becoming the vice president. Let’s hope not all the plot twists in ‘House of Cards’ come true.”

Worth your time: The Times’ political and defense teams have plenty more color on both Fallon and Williamson in this great write-through. One defense source says Fallon was “known as a bit of a sleazebag.” Defense Editor Deborah Haynes reports the reaction to Williamson’s appointment inside the ministry of defense. “The general reaction is — ‘holy shit, who have we got?'” one civil servant tells her. “He is a total unknown.”

Now read this: Tory ministers and MPs are deeply frustrated at Theresa May’s mishandling of the Westminster sleaze scandal, POLITICO’s Tom McTague reports. Numerous party figures tell Tom that May should be perfectly placed to deal with this type of crisis — but is failing to get a grip.

Tweet du jour: Newly elected Labour MP Darren Jones: “I’ve spent over a decade trying to become an MP. I’ve arrived to a complete, shameful mess. Parliament needs a reboot. We must do better.”

Excuse du jour: “Friends” of Damian Green have told the Telegraph his accuser may have mistaken his hand for a tablecloth.

OMG: Daily Mail columnist Sarah Vine, appearing on last night’s After the News after attacking the “Westminster witch-hunt,” was asked how she would feel if her own husband — Michael Gove — repeatedly put his hand on a young female journalist’s knee. Vine replied: “I wouldn’t really care that much, to be perfectly honest.”

Sign language: A “laddish” signpost has been removed from the wall of the Sports and Social Bar at parliament, which presumably will solve all the harassment problems in a flash. Labour activist Liam Young is claiming victory for “the working class.”

Friday feeling: A number of MPs will spend the next 36 hours terrified of receiving the dreaded phone call from a Sunday newspaper hack. Make no mistake — the entire Sunday lobby will have spent the week pursuing stories of sexual misbehavior by MPs to see which if any are true. The young women and men who have spoken out over the past week deserve enormous credit for their courage. And credit to the journalists who have exposed the scandal this past week, including the BBC’s Carolyn Quinn, the Sun’s Harry Cole and Tom Newton Dunn, the Mail on Sunday’s Simon Walters, the Times’ Henry Zeffman, Guido’s Alex Wickham and the Telegraph’s Laura Hughes.

ICYMI LAST NIGHT

DATE NIGHT: Tory MP Michael Fabricant was on Channel 4’s Celebrity First Dates last night, and it didn’t exactly go well. He was paired with Jan, a lively 61-year-old “fantasy novelist” who described herself as left-of-center. She looked deeply unimpressed when he unmasked himself as a Tory MP. “You look lovely. You’ve got that Sophia Loren look,” Fabricant told her. “Oh god I love bullshit,” Jan replied.

We can manage it: In his pre-date interview, Fabricant told the camera he was “probably bisexual” but that he was “looking to find a nice girl for companionship — sex maybe.” He added hurriedly: “Yes we can manage it! Even in our 60s!”

Secretaries: Explaining to divorcee Jan over dinner why he had never married, Fabricant said: “I used to run a mile from commitment. I remember secretaries from the House of Commons, and we would get on really well. And then they would say — ‘But where is this going? I want babies! I want mortgages! I want a house!'”

Hair-raising: The date really fell apart when Jan started commenting on Fabricant’s famous bouffant. “The wig is a bit of a giveaway. Why do you think you need it? Get rid of it,” she told him, in what she thought was a kindly way. “You’re a nice person and you don’t need it.” But a visibly upset Fabricant told her it was “rude” to comment on his appearance. “I just think making personal remarks is rather aggressive and unpleasant,” the MP said. She apologized and they tried to move on. “I won’t discuss your breasts if you won’t discuss my hair,” Fabricant suggested. But the damage was done.

Twitter storm: Fabricant, watching the show at home last night … At 8.52 p.m.: “@FirstDates about to start at 9pm on Channel 4” … At 9.14 p.m.: “OMG. I am cringing with embarrassment at my appearance in #FirstDates I will have to resign after this!” … At 9.15 p.m.: “And what are those red rings round my eyes? Who did the make-up???” … At 9.32 p.m.: “Oooooooh. Nooooooooo And in Part 3 it gets WORSE!!!!! #FirstDates” … At 9.37 p.m.: “I think I’m going to kill myself #FirstDates.”

TODAY IN WESTMINSTER

PARLIAMENT: Sits today. Private members’ bills to be debated include Steve Reed’s proposed law to stop excessive force being used on mental health patients and Jim McMahon’s bid to introduce votes at 16.

MUST-SEE TV: Jeremy Corbyn is on Celebrity Gogglebox at 9 p.m. tonight. He will share the sofa with Jessica Hynes from turn-of-the-century sitcom Spaced. Playbook fears JC may be slightly overshadowed by Liam Gallagher, who is on with his mum Peggy and teenage son Gene. Watch the trailer here.

BIBI IN BLIGHTY: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will discuss his foreign policy priorities at a live Q&A event at Chatham House this morning. The event kicks off at 9 a.m. If your name’s not down, you’re not getting in — but the whole thing will be livestreamed here.

ONE TO WATCH: The Cabinet Office will issue a statement on the infected blood inquiry later this morning.

TODAY’S NEWS MAGS

PICK OF TODAY’S COMMENTARY

Key line: “It is not true to say that this is a witch-hunt. The crucial point about the witch-hunt is that there are no witches. In this case there are, plenty of them.”

This sleaze crisis shows the need for parliament to reform, writes Nick Clegg in the i.

Key line: “Just as with the expenses scandals, the question will remain — why did it take so long for Westminster to react?”

BEYOND THE M25

FRANK TALKING: The editor of one of Scotland’s most prestigious newspapers has published a scathing editorial savaging the SNP politician who hopes to become his new boss. Frank O’Donnell, editor of the Scotsman, ridiculed former Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond’s bid to become chairman of the publishing group that owns his newspaper. Salmond is working with a Scandinavian media mogul who hopes to buy out Johnston Press, the debt-ridden publisher that owns the Scotsman, the i, the Yorkshire Post and many smaller local papers. “Why would Mr. Salmond think he has the knowledge or expertise to make a difference?” O’Donnell asked. “He’s not a businessman; and he’s certainly not a journalist … If I was searching for a top class after-dinner speaker, I would definitely give Alex Salmond a call. But the man to help steer newspapers through their most turbulent times for 200 years? Perhaps not.”

In Catalonia

STREET SPIRIT: Thousands of people have taken to the streets after eight regional ministers were arrested and detained by the Madrid government over Catalonia’s push for independence. The BBC has the latest.

AS SCOTTISH NATIONALISTS ARE CAUGHT BETWEEN HEAD AND HEART: Many Scottish National Party supporters want their leaders to recognize the Catalan declaration of independence, but that risks harming the SNP’s ambitions of leading Scotland out of the U.K., writes Peter Geoghegan for POLITICO.

Trump on tour: Donald Trump embarks on an 11-day tour of Asia this weekend taking in china, Japan and North Korea. What could possible go wrong? U.S. fighter jets are already scrambling over Seoul in anticipation of his arrival. Best line from the New York Times: “It will be the longest tour of Asia by any president since the elder George Bush in late 1991 — a trip that ended in Tokyo when Bush, tired and ill with the flu, collapsed after vomiting on the Japanese prime minister.”

LONDON CALLING

Westminster weather: ☁️⛅️⛅️ Dry but cloudy day with sunny spells.

Trains: Major disruptions expected until noon between Stevenage and King Cross. All the details here.

Politicos might like: The World Press Photo 2017 exhibition, opening tonight and running for three weeks at the Southbank Centre. The annual competition has been running since 1955, and this year’s contest received submissions from more than 5,000 press photographers across 126 countries. This is the only time it will display in England. Entry is free. Highly recommended.

Team news: The Lobby XI football team plays ITN tonight in the final match of a triumphant 2017.

Just grand: The iPhone X goes on sale today for a bargain £999. People have been queuing outside Apple’s Regent Street store since yesterday afternoon.